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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25548499">Till I Hear You Sing</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/winterjasmine007/pseuds/winterjasmine007'>winterjasmine007</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Gladiator (2000)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Le Fantôme de l'Opéra | Phantom of the Opera References, Self-Insert</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 10:40:26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>897</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25548499</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/winterjasmine007/pseuds/winterjasmine007</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Emperor Commodus finds solace in his nephew’s caretaker, a young woman with a beautiful voice. A song imagine based on "Till I Hear You Sing” from Love Never Dies, the sequel to the hit musical Phantom of the Opera.</p><p>Warning: some angst, a slight mention of smut, and a guaranteed happy ending.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus | Emperor Commodus/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Till I Hear You Sing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The day starts, the day ends.<br/>
Time crawls by.</p><p>	To most of Rome, Emperor Commodus was the most powerful man in the world. Yet, with every unsuccessful Senate meeting or every rejection-filled game, Commodus felt anything but powerful.  Sleep began to evade him and most pleasures began to lose their magic. Each day felt like an endless, exhausting battle.</p><p>	It was on one of those days that Lucilla brought you, a midwife and daughter of a legionnaire, to care for his nephew. With a nod of his head, the event fleeted quickly and was lost in a sea of time. </p><p>Night steals in, pacing the floor.<br/>
The moments creep.</p><p>	To most of the servants, it was no surprise to find the Emperor himself walking during the late hours, given the tales of his night terrors. On one of his sleepless nights, he found you crooning to his nephew a lullaby about a pirate and a maiden. Attracted by the novel sound, he leaned against the doorway and listened. </p><p>	In a ruffled, white, floor-length dress and a tight red corset, you looked like an angel too pure to be touched. Commodus flinched like a shy schoolboy as you turned the corner, afraid that you would flee in terror at a glimpse of him. </p><p>	When you were out of sight, he would indulge himself in endless thoughts of you - what it might be like to talk to you, what were the things you liked, and what you possibly thought of him. And in his sinful moments, he fantasized about what you might look like under your dress - wearing nothing but your red corset and writhing at his mercy. It only made your wholesome face seem even more ethereal.</p><p>Yet I can't bear to sleep<br/>
‘till I hear you sing</p><p>	He found you beautiful, not doubt,	but it was when you sang Lucius to sleep that he would fall in love. Sometimes, you would kiss the child’s forehead before you left and instinctively, Commodus would touch his own. </p><p>	Another time, after an exceptionally tiring day, Lucilla caught him curled up outside Lucius’s bedroom, having fallen asleep to your song. Even after she’d rudely woke him, he kept glancing behind with hopes the phantom of your voice lingered. </p><p>And weeks pass,<br/>
and months pass.<br/>
Seasons fly,<br/>
still you don't walk through the door.</p><p>	As Lucius grew up, he insisted on having you by his side every night to tuck him in. The little boy became more of a friend to you, confiding in you and occasionally telling you a story from his uncle’s repertoire. And though he would never tell his sister, the Emperor thought you were a better mother to his nephew than she could ever be. You were kind, affectionate, loyal, and devoted. Indeed lucky would be the child you reared.</p><p>	Commodus would continue to stealthily watch you for years from behind the pillars of the palace. And every night, he would pray to the gods that you would turn around for once. That you would find him like Psyche found Cupid in the faint candlelight. Even if you belonged to someone else, heaven forbid you had a husband and child of your own, he needed you like the missing piece of his heart.</p><p>And in a haze,<br/>
I count the silent days<br/>
till I hear you sing once more.</p><p>	Then one fateful night, after you had finished your nightly lullaby for the boy, you spun around to find Commodus standing directly behind you in the chamber. You swallowed with fright, gripping the bedpost for dear life. His eyes were sunk with heartache and his hands were cold with fear. </p><p>	He’d spent ages imagining this encounter. Behind closed doors, he wrote the words of your songs on parchment so he wouldn’t forget them. The task proved to be rather arduous; the mere thought of you possibly rejecting him sent him into a flood of blinding tears and stained ink. </p><p>	With a quivering lip, he gently began one of the songs he’d heard you sing before.</p><p>“Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime.<br/>
Lead me; save me from my solitude.”</p><p>	His voice gained confidence from your sympathetic eyes. A soft smile began to form when you carefully stroked his cheek. He placed a hand over yours and leaned in to your touch.</p><p>“Say you'll want me with you here, beside you.<br/>
Anywhere you go, let me go, too.”</p><p>	Commodus shivered as he brought his forehead to yours, silently pleading for you not to leave just this once.</p><p>“(Y/N), that's all I ask of you…”</p><p>	In a heartbeat, you wrapped your arms around him, caressing his dark hair while he sobbed. It was unclear if those tears were happiness of his fantasy coming to life, or if those tears were grievances of a distant memory. Commodus held you tightly. “Please stay with me, even if it’s only tonight. Please don’t leave me, Y/N.” </p><p>	You nodded and chastely pressed your lips to his. “I’m not leaving you, my Emperor. Not here, not now, not ever.”</p><p>	Commodus cupped your face with his hands. “Do not think of me as an Emperor, sweet one. For tonight, all I ask is to be Commodus.”</p><p>	“I’m not leaving you, Commodus.” You affirmed as he peppered you with dulcet kisses. You were real, in his arms, and for now, it felt like Elysium.</p>
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